Once the door closed behind sergeant Novik, Daniel released a long sigh.

Ana took a few steps towards him, looked deep into his eyes and asked, "Are you sure you'll be able to search the park on your own?"

"Yeah," Daniel replied and looked away. "It's gonna help me get my mind off of... things." He didn't have to say what exactly he meant by things.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry." Teresa joined Ana, making him look at her.

"Why?" Daniel asked. "You didn't put it there. You just found it."

The silence covered them like a feathered blanket. There were still a couple of hours left before the dawn, so Teresa and Ana decided to go out to clear their thoughts, at least that was what they told Daniel. Had he not met them, he would have thought that they went hunting for fresh blood, but it was far more probable that they wanted to discuss their next moves in private.

Once alone, Daniel concluded it would be the wisest to lay down to rest, but sleep eluded him. Black thoughts swarmed in his mind like thunder clouds, and he knew not how to chase them away. Therefore, for the first time in several years, he prayed. Although he couldn't remember all the words, with his hands pressed together, he spoke to God. After he mumbled a prayer, he remained lying, his fingers intertwined on his chest. He was afraid to pray for healing because a part of his mind believed that he didn't deserve it.

Wait until afternoon, he finally told himself. Don't sign your own death sentence yet.

In a way, he was grateful that wandering through the park would divert his thoughts from his current medical condition. He closed his eyes. Somewhere behind them, a well-known pain was creeping. As the throbbing grew, he felt an inexplicable gratitude because he now knew what caused it.

If he managed to fall asleep, the morning would have come too soon, but Daniel only managed to doze off for short periods of time. That's when dark thoughts would take over his dreams, creating impossible scenes filled with surreal, threatening characters.

While he fought the exhausting dreams, Ana and Teresa returned. They didn't wake him, instead they retreated to their rooms.

Every time Daniel would snap out of a dream, he would look at the bottom of the curtains. It seemed as if an eternity had passed before a dim line of light appeared, a signature of the dawn.

Sergeant Novik returned not long after the sunrise, as he promised. He was wearing his uniform, but instead on his head, his police hat was in his hands.

"You don't seem to rested," he said after he observed Daniel.

He looked at the sergeant under half closed eyelids and run his hand through his ruffled hair. "You don't look much better yourself."

The sergeant nodded. "You're right about that. This whole situation chases the sleep away. Are you sure you'll be able to..."

He never finished his question because Daniel interrupted him. "Yes, I'll be able to search the park and not attract unwanted attention to myself."

"I mean because of your illness." The sergeant stared at his hat rather than at Daniel, straightening its edge. "I wouldn't want to be in your shoes."

"I wouldn't want to be in my shoes either, but it is what it is," Daniel replied with a bit too much exasperation, so in a calmer tone he added, "Shal we go?"

"Did you find a better map?" Ana's voice coming from behind them startled Daniel so much that he literally jumped.

Sergeant Novik's nerves were stronger. "I did," he responded. "I managed to find a map dating back about three hundred years. At that time, on the location of today's park was a nobleman's estate. About a hundred years ago, a fire engulfed the mansion, along with its tenants. It was never restored."

Daniel's eyebrows furrowed. "I walked through the park before and I never saw any house. The only thing that comes to mind are two rundown walls overgrown by ivy and Virginia creeper. That's far from a good hiding place."

The sergeant nodded. "It's a long shot, I know, but we need a starting point and this one is as good as any."

Daniel scratched his head, ruffling his already messy hair. "Okay, I'll be on a lookout for a house that doesn't exist anymore, and when I fail, then what?"

"Then you look for a basement," Teresa declared as if it was the most obvious thing.

Daniel's eyes narrowed. "If there isn't a house, how can there be a basement?"

"She might be right," Ana took a step forward. "Those old mansions often had separate entrance to the basement. Usually, it was some sort of a stone bulkhead entrance, with stairs leading downwards. You'd have to bend down to walk through the door."

It occurred Daniel that she may have been alive during the time the house was still standing. Or at least what the vampires considered alive. If the movies weren't wrong, they could be around to observe the passing of time for centuries. Still, he withheld from asking questions, deciding to leave those for later. Providing he lived long enough to see the later.

"You might need to look under the greenery," Ana continued, unaware of Daniel's thoughts.

"Yes," Daniel agreed. "I'll do that. Are we going now?" he asked, glancing at sergeant Novik.

The sergeant nodded and with a motion of his hand, prompted Daniel to head to the door. He followed suit, but didn't open the door until the two vampires retired to a back room. Then they stepped onto the sunlit porch.

The police car was parked on a small clearing in front of the cabin. When he entered, the sweet smell of fresh pastry filled Daniel's nostrils.

"I thought you might be hungry," the sergeant said, to which Daniel's stomach responded by soft growling.

Following the path just barely wide enough for a single car, sergeant Novik took them out of the woods, onto the gravel road that eventually led them to town. He parked the car near the church, reached for the glove compartment and took out two walkie talkies. He handed one to Daniel. "This way we can stay in contact. I'll be at the latest murder site, we should be in range. Whether you find something or not, stay in contact."

"Do I get a gun?" Daniel asked.

Sergeant Novik raised an eyebrow. "We don't just hand out those."

Daniel smiled. "Of course not, I was only kidding. Not that it would be of any use anyways. I saw just how difficult it is to hurt a vampire."

"In case you find any traces of him, don't be a hero. I saw both Teresa and Ana walking around in broad daylight," sergeant Novik warned him.

Daniel looked up at the sky. There wasn't a cloud in sight. I bet it was much gloomier day than this when he saw them, Daniel thought to himself, thinking of the day he saw Ana in the middle of the road. Victor had yelled at her. Only a day later, he was dead. Thinking about the events that took place at the old factory gave Daniel the chills.

Sergeant Novik must have noticed because he asked, "What is the matter?"

"Nothing," Daniel quickly replied. "Wish me luck."

The sergeant placed his hand on Daniel's shoulder, looked directly into his eyes and repeated, "Do not be a hero. Your job is to look for possible clues, and if you find any, get as far away as possible. Any further plans we'll discuss later." The determination in his voice left no room for argue, so Daniel just nodded affirmatively. "Good luck," the sergeant added before Daniel stepped on a gravel path leading into the park.

Mature trees grew on each side of the path, like ancient soldiers on watch. Crooked branches were reaching in all directions to gather as much sun as possible. Majority of the leaves already fell to the ground, exposing bird's nests in the forks of the branches. As Daniel walked, he created his own rhythm with dried leaves crunching beneath his feet, and the sunrays used every bare spot in the canopies to reach the ground.

He took his time, knowing he had to stay alert. He let his eyes wander in search of the ruins that were once walls. He counted on the fact that lack of leaves wouldn't hide larger structure from his sight. An hour and a half later, he found himself at the end of the path, on the opposite side of the park. In front of him was a sidewalk that followed the road. He had to admit that the strategy he chose wasn't fruitful.

Daniel sat on a bench under one of the older trees. He lifted his eyes. Above him, intertwined branches looked almost like lace, with sun piercing through to caress his face. If only he could remember which way he was walking a few years earlier when he stumbled across the ruined walls. However, as it usually happens, the memory would probably surface when he least expected it and when it would probably be of no use to him anymore.

It was time for a different approach. If the paths through the park won't lead him to what he was looking for, he would have to divert from them. He sat on the bench a while longer. Engrossed in his own thoughts, he didn't even notice a couple of people walking by. Soon he got up and stepped on the grass sprinkled with many leaves containing various shades of yellow, orange, red and brown.

Without a specific plan, Danel continued to wander through the park. Truly magnificent trees grew there. He stopped in front of a poplar tree that was a living witness of the strength a lightning bolt carries within. Yellow leaves held on to only a part of the branches in its canopy. A third of them showed no signs of life, while the trunk underneath was damaged; a wound caused by a lightning gaped on it.

It took a sound of a church bell marking the noon to tear Daniel's gaze away from the tree. If it hadn't happened, maybe he would have missed the scene to his right, not far from where he was standing. Ivy. It climbed high, but not on tree trunks, but a flat surface – a partially torn down wall with red bricks exposed only on the top. And at the foot of it, someone parted the ivy shoots, revealing a low stone arch that led to the underground.

Thank you for reading, dear readers!

Did Daniel finnd what he was supposed to find? Is the vampire really hiding there? What do you think?

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Until next chapter...